A Brave New World - The Oneechan Thrillogy
by RedDawnRocker
Summary: The war is over, peace is in hand and a new world has been born. The time has come for the survivors to pick up the pieces and build a new home; a new life for themselves in this "fantasy" season 3 eighteen-chapter continuation of Valvrave the Liberator. What really happened after the war? This is just one of many possibilities.
1. Chapter 1

**All characters and story elements are the properties of their respective owners (Sunrise, Inc). I hold no rights, trademarks, copyrights or license and present this side story as a non-profit fan-fiction in thanks and in respect for my love of the title and characters (especially Saki and Haruto). Thank you Sunrise, for giving me the inspiration to return to my writing.**

**At the end of season 2, the creators left a lot of openings some critics have referred to as sloppy storytelling; I, myself, see it as a nod to the fans to openly interpret whatever makes them happiest believing at the end of the story. This story will take place as an entire 3rd season I could easily envision in my mind. Gone is the war, the destruction, the despair. My season 3 is about hope, rebuilding a better society, love, friendship and family; "A Brave New World" if I may borrow the terminology from the Great Bard himself Mr. William Shakespeare.**

**I've been left with many questions in my mind since the series ended; "Why was Marie's death seemingly different than Haruto's?"; "With Akira growing more confident in herself, and the people around her, how long would it take her to throw all in with society as a whole?", "L-Elf proved himself a confident and capable soldier in war; just what would he feel trying to re-assimilate himself as a civilian, a duck out of water so to speak into society?; and most importantly "Who actually loved Haruto Tokishima? Saki Rukino or Shoko Sashinami? Which did Haruto, himself truly love ?".**

**In this many-chapter full season story I hope to have answered the questions in my own way, to the enjoyment of those felt betrayed by the ending we were given in Valvrave the Liberator season 2 and those with an open mind to one man's interpretation of some of his favorite characters in anime. This story contains friendship, love and a touch of lighthearted comedy often seen between friends and family in good times. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed meeting my new friends once again.**

* * *

**Chapter 1**

* * *

"who are you?" Haruto asked the strange young man beside him. A foggy zombie-like aura engulfing the young hero, Haruto Tokishima. He had in fact, sacrificed the last of his Runes, his memories, to save his friends.

"They never gave up and neither will I" Haruto would speak of his friends while dealing the final blow to the enemy of his very existance; his very world. The recipient; a man,if he could be called a man, Cain. Like those he opposed, Cain was Kamitsuki or one of those touched by God (as they liked to refer to themselves). It would take all he had to bring Cain down; for those he loved, Haruto was willing to scarifice just that. They would be safe under his watch; even if it proved his final one.

L-elf thought for a moment of the question asked by the boy before him. They were enemies not long ago. They became two boys sharing a common goal for different reasons soon after. They'd go on to become comrades in arms. Something more? No, he could no longer deny it. He rarely used the word. He didn't freely throw it around. It was true though, Haruto Tokishima had become something all too rare in his life. If this was his last chance to tell him. he had to seize the opportunity just as Haruto seized the one before him to defeat Cain.

"Your friend!" L-elf exclaimed tears in his eyes as Haruto, his friend, began to drift off to his final rest.

Haruto Tokishima's funeral was grand by design. All those he saved would be there to pay their respect, no, their debt to the boy who would be responsible for them having a future. He would be the hero they'd never forget. The Founder of this brave new world they now called home. Their very inspiration for pressing on no matter what hard times life would deliver them. Haruto Tokishima, the boy who would be King. Struck down in his prime, just 17 years of age.

"Are you sure we did the right thing?" Prime Minister Shoko Sashinami asked, in a hushed whisper.

"We did what had to be done" L-elf consoled her. "He may in fact be dead. At the moment, we really can't be sure" L-elf whispered back. "The people are pulling together in this fragile time. They need a reason to prove their strength to both themselves and those around them. Haruto's 'death' could prove just that".

Shoko nodded slightly in agreement. She knew the less people who knew the better, but keeping this secret from Akira and Saki seemed wrong on so many levels. "L-elf must know what he's doing" she'd think to herself but at the same time knew it didn't make her feel like less of a traitor to her friends. Her sisters in this new world they'd helped create due to their sacrifices of their very humanity.

The tears freely flowed through the eyes of Akira Renbokoji, not just for the loss of a friend, but for the pain Shoko-chan must be feeling deep in her heart. She knew of Shoko's feelings for Haruto-kun. He was her oldest and dearest friend. He thought her possibly more than that. "Why isn't she crying more?" Akira would ask herself. Looking over at Saki-chan, she noticed more tears in her eyes than in Shoko-chan's; was there something she missed?

Saki Rukino wondered to herself. "I couldn't feel his death".

"Why couldn't I feel his death?" she shouted in her head thinking back to the deaths of Aina-chan, her dear sweet Aina-oneechan; the death of Thunder; the death of Kyuma. She could feel them all; and surely her connection to Kyuma and Thunder was not as strong as her connection to Haruto was. Looking over to Shoko-oneechan she noticed no tears in her eyes. Although Shoko had become a bit of a hard-nosed politician on the outside she could never become so cold; especially, not when it came to Haruto.

"Could it be" she'd think to herself; could he be alive?".


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

"Hello Prime Minister" a nurse pleasantly greeted Shoko as she approached the hospital check-in desk. "Come to check on our patient?" she asked.

"As always" Shoko forced a brave smile. "How is he doing today?".

"No change, I'm sorry to say" the nurse answered escorting Shoko to Room 415, opening the door she had become most familiar with in the recent past. "If you have the time, the Doctor would like to speak to you for a moment".

Shoko nodded and took a chair beside the bed as usual.

It had been exactly 18 days and nights that he'd been in this bed; in a coma-like state. She'd like to hold his hand, tell him all would be alright. Hoping he could hear her but knowing there was no chance. His runes were gone; His memories. There was nothing there save one that was stored just as he was about to die. She had no idea what exactly it was but knew that L-elf, the lad who she never quite trusted had been the one who saved Haruto. He would never tell anyone what the rune was but the fact that he saved Haruto's life earned him her trust from that point on. He'd never made her regret that decision.

Saki Rukino watched from the shadows, tracking Shoko-oneechan to the hospital where she just knew he had to be. "He's alive" she whispered aloud tears in her eyes yet a slight smile on her lips.

"Why did you keep us apart, Shoko-chan" she spoke in a hushed whisper knowing all too well there was no way Shoko would hear or even answer from the distance between them. She knew he was here. Tonight, once Shoko-chan had left; she'd sneak into the hospital, into his room, and finally see the man she loved once again.

A cellphone rang waking Shoko out of her slumber. As usual, she fell asleep in the chair beside Haruto's hospital bed. She'd speak to him all night; sharing stories of their childhood and teen years hoping they'd stick. They never did. He never as much as responded.

"Prime Minister Sashinami" Shoko answered the phone.

"Prime Minister" her assistant asked. "Where are you?". "The new president of Galactic Banks is here for his appointment".

Shoko thought quickly "tell him I'm on my way. I got caught up in double-checking the plan that he proposed". Shoko thought quickly on her feet "Give him a smile and inform him that I have very favorable news for him. He'll be happy to wait" Shoko giggled.

"I'm sure he will" her assistant chuckled as Shoko hung up.

"I must be off my sweet Haruto. I'll return once the meeting is over" Shoko informed her childhood friend. Giving him a hug and a quick peck on the lips hoping once again he'd return the favor. "Nothing" she thought to herself in great sadness. "Will he ever come back".


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

* * *

Saki watched from the shadows as Shoko left the hospital. Butterflies in her stomach, she knew there was no turning back now. If she was wrong this could lead to the end of all hope for her; but if she was right. She knew she had to be right. She was betting her life, no her very future existance on it. If he was truly gone, what did she have left to live for?

Saki took her hospital entry as more a mission than a visit. If they were keeping him a secret he wouldn't be easy to find nor would he be easy to get to.

Her first target, the nurse's locker room. She studied the location of the security cameras and the nurses rounds pattern. Sneaking in in ninja-like style. L-elf taught her well. It was just a matter of minutes to secure a nurse's outfit; a matter of seconds to access the patient files. It took no time at all to look through the admissions files. It had been exactly 18 days she recalled. 18 days since she heard his voice. 18 days since she's seen his face. 18 days since she felt his touch. 18 days alone without him.

"16 admissions 18 days ago" Saki thought to herself. "5 pregnancies, 2 cancer patients, 1 heart attack, 7 general admissions...and 1 coma patient". Saki froze thinking to herself "coma. That would explain it". "Room 415" she whispered to herself.

She picked up a clipboard and hid behind it heading toward the hospital lifts.

"This is it" she thought "there's no turning back now". She turned a corner seeing her target in the distance "Room 415" she smiled nervously. She pushed the door handle, her hands shaking more than they ever had. she walked in eyes closed closing the door behind her. "This is it" she thought to herself once again knowing that if she was wrong it was all over. She opened her eyes.

"I knew it!" she almost shouted silencing herself quickly for fear of being discovered. "You're alive" she whispered to him in an almost dreamlike state. She sat on the edge of his bed taking his hand. "I told you I'd always be there to protect you" she whispered to him knowing all too well he couldn't answer "I'm here now and I'm not going anywhere". She softly kissed his lips; cuddled up in bed against him and found the sleep she had been denied these last 18 days; and 17 nights.

Four hours later the door slowly opened.

"I'm back" whispered Shoko expecting to find Haruto alone. The sight before her knocked the wind out of her sails. There beside him, cuddled up tight; "Saki-oneechan?!" she wondered. "The tears in her eyes. The smile on her face" Shoko thought. "What did I miss?!". "Was there something quietly going on between them?" she was confused. If it was anyone else but Saki or Akira she'd be angry; she'd fight.

"Why have I never had those feelings for him?" she thought. "He was my best friend; he was my...friend". She finally realized her feelings for him after all this time. She long saw Haruto as the man she loved, the man she'd marry, the man she'd spend her life with; but now, thinking about her feelings for him. It was never the love of a lover. It was the love of a best friend. Shoko left the room quietly closing the door behind her stopping by the nurses desk on the way out.

"Leaving early tonight, Prime Minister?" the nurse asked of Shoko.

"I won't be around for a bit I'm afraid" Shoko said with a slight smile. "a friend will be watching over him". "Could you do me a big favor?" Shoko asked the nurse.

"For you, of course Prime Minister!"

"Let her sleep. She needs it and she'll need a good breakfast once she wakes up. When you meet her, tell her that Shoko-oneechan said 'he's all yours, now. never let him go'. She'll know what it means".

Shoko left the hospital that day feeling better than she had in a long long time. Still confused, she had to ask around. Akira-chan was lead technician on the Valvrave Units. Surely if something was going on she'd have an idea what was happening.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

* * *

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you Shoko-chan. I was afraid you'd be hurt" Akira would start.

"How long have you known?" Shoko asked her dear surrogate sister. "did Saki-chan or Haruto tell you?"

Akira shook her head quickly indicating that she surely found out on her own .

"I was repairing Camilla one day" Akira began to explain."I saw something strange going on on the cockpit recordings".

Shoko sat forward listening intently.

"They were in their battle suits, talking about 'what happened the night before'. It made me curious. I continued to watch". Akira looked down shyly almost ashamed "He proposed to her".

"He what!?" Shoko exclaimed somewhat stunned.

Akira stopped her. "It wasn't like that. He used the word obligation and the word revenge like it was a debt he needed to pay" Akira continued. "Saki-oneechan turned him down".

"Turned him down?!" Shoko thought. "The way she was acting why would she turn him down?!".

Akira whispered, "She told him what happened wasn't his fault. It was the Kamitsuki curse. She told him to go to you and protect you".

Shoko was speechless, she thought to herself "She had him and sent him back to me? Why would she?".

"After he left, she returned to her cockpit and cried; Spoke things aloud I shouldn't have heard." Akira explained 'it's not your fault my love' she said 'it's our curse. We're never destined to be together my sweet Haruto. I will never leave you alone, even if you choose Shoko-chan over me' ".

Shoko began to understand. "Saki loved Haruto; loves Haruto. She just wants him to love her back. She wants love, not debt or revenge". Shoko stopped herself mid-thought and uttered a whisper only Akira was close enough to hear. "Debt or revenge?"

Akira bowed her head tears in her eyes.

"You know more than you're saying. Don't you Akira oneechan?"

Akira nodded, beginning to cry.

"What happened?" Shoko asked sternly.

"The curse of the Kamitsuki was stronger in Haruto than any of us. It controlled him" Akira continued reluctantly afraid of how her words would be taken "I found a video recording of the incident on the 01's security videos".

"What happened!?" Shoko demanded.

"The Kamitsuki curse took over Haruto" Akira cried "he tore off Saki-oneechan's clothes and he".

Shoko stopped Akira. She didn't want to hear any more.

"He hurt her" Shoko whispered angrily.

"No" Akira stopped her "yes, at first he attacked her but there was more"

"More?"

"Saki-oneechan was in pain initially, obviously it was her first time" Akira explained " she stroked his hair, held his hands in hers, wrapped herself around him" Shoko and Akira both began to blush "she held him to her almost like she was protecting him from himself".

Shoko understood "like she loved him" she spoke aloud.

Akira nodded in agreement.

"He woke to see her clothes in tatters. At least, what was left of them. Then noticed his own state of undress" Akira went on, "that's when "Saki-chan received your text about winning the election. used it to change the subject away from what happened. She wanted him to feel no guilt over what happened".

"I snooped a little more and found a diary entry on Saki-oneechan's computer. The two of them went on a date the next morning. Her one thought 'I can't let him apologize. It would destroy him'. She said he was the first man to ever care about her. The first to see her as more than a tool. It seems he was ready to propose on the date for reasons other than debt and obligation; then we'd be under attack and they had to leave the date and go right into battle. You saw the proposal. You have to admit he was a total bonehead about it when he spoke with his mind not his heart" Akira giggled nervously.

"That's our Haruto" Shoko corrected herself "no he's Saki-oneechan's Haruto now!" Shoko smiled.

Akira looked on puzzled.

"I couldn't tell you before; but now the cat's out of the bag" Shoko smiled. "He's alive Akira-oneechan. He's in bad shape. We hid him trying to find a way to bring him back to his old self but haven't found a way yet."

Akira threw her arms around her sister "why didn't you tell me?"

"He's in a coma of sorts, Akira-oneechan. He's lost all his runes but the one L-Elf saved him with".

"L-elf saved him?!" Akira was stunnned at the thought. Maybe he really wasn't such a bad guy after all.

"We've been trying to find a way to restore his runes but unfortunately it's just not happening".

"Why didn't you just ask me" giggled Akira.

Shoko looked at her sister stunned at the smile.

"I have some good news and some bad news" Akira began almost like the lead-in to an old joke, the kind that made you groan hearing it from an old uncle's lips. "I can't restore Haruto-kun's runes. They're gone for good. There's no way to save them".

An ill-look fell on Shoko's face as well as one of confusion at the obvious smile of Akira's "Is that it then? He's gone?" Shoko asked.

"I said we can't get his runes back Shoko-oneechan; I never said we can't make him new ones. We can hack him oneechan" Akira giggled. "And who do you know that's a better hacker than me?"

Shoko was speechless. Here she was trying to protect her 2 sisters and all this time they were the ones who held the answer. "I love you oneechan!" Shoko cried out as she squeezed her sister tight. "Let's go to the hospital and wake Saki-oneechan. We need to tell her her man is coming home to her!".

"Saki-oneechan is in the hospital too?" Akira asked more than a bit confused.

"I'll explain on the way!" Shoko giggled as the two young women headed off to give Saki-oneechan the nod they knew she was waiting for.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

* * *

"There are the lovebirds" Shoko-chan shouted out as she and Akira walked into the hospital room.

A startled Saki Rukino sat up in the bed she was sharing with the man she loved. "I can explain".

Shoko giggled aloud "You don't have to explain to me oneechan. I think it's great the two of you found each other. He does love you, too, you know! He just doesn't know how to put it into words. He's an idiot like that sometimes".

All three young women laughed at what seemed a private joke only they got the true meaning of.

"I'm sure once we get him back on his feet he'll screw it up again" Shoko continued. "Just be sure to shut him up before he keeps on talking. I hear a tongue works wonders".

Saki blushed momentarily before truly hearing the words uttered by her big sister "Once we" she spoke aloud almost in a trance.

"Get him back on his feet" Shoko interrupted. "It'll be your sisterly duty to me to knock him back off them" Shoko winked a mischievous wink at her little sister".

"I'll make you proud, oneechan" Saki proclaimed happily throwing her arms around her beloved Shoko-chan "and I'll make sure to shut him up before he can say something stupid forcing me to hit him".

Akira finally spoke up with the news she initially came here to share with her sisters "When the Kametsuki Curse infected Haruto-chan. When it started feeding on his runes. When it hurt you Saki-oneechan. I promised to find a way to cure it".

"But it didn't hurt" Saki tried to tell Akira it's not what it seemed but Akira cut her off mid-sentence.

"We know, Now!" Akira laughed "You appeared, not to be hating it".

Saki blushed while flashing a little grin "I'm not a slut you know".

Akira giggled "we both know it was your first time. Was it all you hoped it would be?".

Saki smiled "It was with the man I love. So I'd say most definitely". All three ladies chuckled a bit.

"Well to continue" Akira tried to regain her composure, failing miserably. "I initially thought the secret was to replace lost runes or even to stop the originals from being eaten. I was wrong".

Saki looked on confused a bit.

Shoko spoke up "Akira is going to hack Haruto".

Saki's confusion couldn't get any deeper.

Akira decided it was time to reveal her plan to her sisters. "Initially I thought of a way to link Haruto's runes with Shoko-chan's. They'd be linked as one forever. More than soulmates".

Saki nodded in agreement with a little sadness in her heart. It only made sense. He had the most memories of her after all.

"We decided however, that linking Haruto to Shoko-chan's runes would force him to live in the past. We need to think of only the future in this new world of ours. That's why if you agree we'll link you and Haruto together forever. It only makes sense considering the feelings you both have for each other".

"What do you say Saki-chan?" Shoko slyly asked.

"Throwing her arms around her sister excitedly once again she'd already given her answer "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!"

Akira laughed "Can we take that as a yes?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

* * *

"How's it going on your end? " Akira asked of her Shoko-oneechan.

"Almost have the first test done. Starting on phase 2."

"Rune loss? " Akira asked.

"Down to 8%" Shoko shouted across the Vavrave Hangar.

"Still not good enough " Akira shook her head. "We need to get this right the first time. Haruto-chan and Saki-oneechan are counting on us".

Shoko wanted to tell her Akira-oneechan that even if she got something wrong it'd be alright. She wanted to tell her the plan would definitely work. She wanted to; but couldn't. They both understood what was at stake here; the risks to be taken. Unfortunately, it wasn't their lives that were at risk. It was the lives of the two closest friends they ever had.

"I don't know what's going wrong. This should work!" Akira chastised herself aloud quite loudly banging her forehead with her hand.

Shoko began to feel the despair of defeat creeping into her very existance. Surely if Akira-oneechan couldn't conquer the problem at hand there was nothing they could do. They couldn't keep thier promises to either Haruto-kun or to Saki-oneechan.

"Have you tried building a sort of filtration routine into the software?" a familiar voiced asked from the shadows behind them. "It might help to strain out the bad data from the good". "A sort of signal booster may work as well".

Startled, both young woman would spin around to see a familar face neither expected.

"L-Elf? How long have you been standing there?" Shoko asked her Secretary of Defense.

"Long enough to see I was initially on the right track" he chuckled.

"He laughed!" both ladies thought to themselves. In all the time they've known him he never laughed. "Maybe, he never had a reason to". "Could Haruto actually mean more to him than he's even let on" they both thought almost with a shared consciousness.

"You're definitely on the right track!" Akira chimed in running over to L-Elf giving him a huge hug.

A twinge crept into Shoko's heart "Keep your hands off him" she thought stunning herself in the process. "What was that?" she had to ask in her own head. This was her Akira-oneechan. How could she ever be jealous of her. "Jealous?!" she thought "Jealous of Oneechan touching L-Elf?". She needed to get these thoughts out of her head.

"Hey, oneechan!" yelled Akira. "Get over here, we need to get this into overdrive now that we have another set of hands!"

"On my way, oneechan!" Shoko shouted back, putting on a happy face hoping they couldn't see what she was really thinking.

Shoko struggled through the next two days, working non-stop around the clock helping make sure they got everything right on first try. Her feelings were slowly growing out of control. "Why am I feeling so uneasy around L-Elf?" she thought; "Why am I getting so angry everytime Akira-oneechan accidentally brushes or bumps into him?". "It's almost over" she thought thinking maybe all she needed was a nice cold shower.

".04%" L-Elf called out with a bit of joy in his voice. Joy easily noticed by Shoko.

Akira-chan ran over to L-elf showering him with a thousand thank yous, or at least it probably felt like a thousand to him. She wrapped her arms around him, squeezed tight with a big bear hug thought impossible from such a petite young woman and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"I can't believe her!" Shoko thought to herself. Turning away pretending to adjust a wire so neither of them could see the obvious anger on her face. "How dare she kiss my L-Elf" thought Shoko in a hateful way she'd never experienced before. For a moment time froze at the reality of the thought in her head; "my L-elf?!". Shoko tried shaking off the fog she soon found in her brain. "There's no way" she thought.

Akira interrupted her oneechan's thoughts with a big hug from behind whispering in her ear, "It took you long enough!" she whispered devilishly.

Shoto turned around looking her oneechan in the eyes. Was she complaining about her taking too long to adjust the wires or did she know. It wouldn't take long for her to get her answer.

"Haruto wasn't the only oblivious one around here" Akira whispered. "L-Elf's always been so into you. Now get up and go put your brand on him" Akira laughed.

Shoko stopped her "but aren't you".

"Trying to get you two together?" Akira smiled. "He's all yours" she hugged her oneechan tighter. "Just so you know, I already have my guy. He just doesn't know it yet!". Akira-chan winked at her oneechan with a mischievious grin on her lips. "This is gonna be soooo much fun!" she thought.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

* * *

"When did Akira-oneechan get so sneaky?" Shoko Sashinami asked herself wondering if some of herself rubbed off onto that now brazen sister of hers.

"She was such a shy girl before Saki and I got our hands on her" she chuckled in her head. "Well, she's watching so I better not let her down" she thought.

The walk across the room felt like miles not just the few yards that stood between L-elf and herself. She could feel her heart beating; hear herself take every breath. She knew she had only one chance to get it right. "Here goes!" Shoko mustered the nerve hoping to do her big sister Akira proud.

"We did it, Prime Minister. In just a few days we'll have your Haruto back for you".

"He did it for me?" Shoko thought to herself questioningly. "He did it for me!" she began to realize.

Shoko took a deep breath and launched herself forward wrapping her arms around the brave young man she obviously fancied.

"This is a thank you for what you did for Akira-oneechan" she hugged him tight.

"This is a thank you for what you did for Haruto" Shoko gave L-Elf a soft kiss on the cheek.

"And Saki-oneechan" she kissed his other cheek.

"And this, ever-faithful sweet L-Elf is a thank you from me" as she moved in and planted a soft gentle kiss on the handsome young man's lips before turning away and walking back toward her smiling sister.

"W-what does this mean?" he asked hoping for a clearcut answer.

"You're my Secretary of Defense" You figure it out Shoko chuckled. Leaving the poor young lad almost as frozen and comatose as the young man they were trying to save.

"Hold it right there young lady!" Akira shouted scolding Shoko as any sister should. "You should never leave a young man hanging with a question on his lips".

Akira marched right over to L-Elf and began to whisper in his ear.

"What is she telling him?" Shoko asked herself "surely she can't be?".

"Saki-oneechan's Haruto?" L-Elf repeated in a zombie-like trance.

Shoko looked on confused.

"Shoko-oneechan's L-Elf?!" he said aloud in a daze as Shoko began to blush.

"Akky-oneechan!" Shoko screamed in shame. "He was supposed to figure it out himself" she thought.

Akira took L-Elf by the hand leading him over to her beet-red oneechan. Putting his hand into Shoko's she'd speak. "Talk. Use your words". She remembered Shoko giving her the same advice when all she wanted to do hide behind her text and voice synthesis programs. "you have a beautiful voice, use it!" she'd scold her oneechan once again.

"You like me?" L-Elf asked wondering exactly when she began to share his feelings.

"It depends. Do you like me?" Shoko asked hoping for the right answer.

"I have for a very, very long time Shoko-Chan" L-Elf would stumble to get the words out of his mouth. To Shoko they seemed just right.

"Me too, I guess", Shoko shyly smiled. "All I know is the more I saw you around other girls the more angry I became".

"Angry? At me?" he thought.

Almost, as if reading his mind, she quickly shook her head no. "Angry at myself, for almost missing my chance to tell you how I feel".

"Now, that we know? What do we do?" L-Elf asked never really having an adult relationship before. He was a master strategist; A near perfect hand-to-hand combatant; but a lover? Never before.

Almost, like clockwork Akira chimed in. "You kiss her!" her sharp tongue coming into play. "I'm supposed to be the ex-Hikikomori here and yet you kids are the oblivious ones!".

"Kids" Shoko giggled to herself. "We're only a few months apart Akky-oneechan. Stop being so overly dramatic".

L-Elf listened to Akira-chan's advice, hoping it was the right thing to do.

Shoko's lips parted slightly as they met poor nervous L-Elf's. "He's shaking almost as much as I am" she thought to herself just before their lips touched. The kiss was like nothing she ever experienced before, her mind drifted, her knees began to get weak, her stomach began to do flip flops and her heart began to beat a bit faster. There was no denying it, she owed her sister big. Boy did she ever, and from the look on his face so did he.

As they broke off the kiss, Akira took her oneechan's hand.

"Okay! That's good enough for tonight! It's time to go Shoko-oneechan!".

Both Shoko and L-Elf turned to Akira with a puzzled look in thier eyes.

"We're going home now young lady!" Akira ordered her Oneechan in a matronly way. "I'm the big sister and you're my responsibility" Akira announced out loud turning right to L-Elf. "Now as for you! You got your answer! Now in the morning you will be sure to give Shoko-oneechan a call and ask her out on a proper date. There will be no games! She will say yes!". Turning once again to Shoko "It's time we got you to bed!". Akira grabbed Shoko by the hand dragging her out of the hangar.

"What was" Shoko began to ask her oneechan confused over what happened.

"That all about?" Akira continued Shoko's thought. "Tell me who would you consider your greatest strategist?" Akira asked.

"That's simple" Shoko answered. "L-Elf is the best strategist we have in the art of war".

"And in the art of love?" Akira inquired with an impish grin.

Thinking for a second, about to say Saki-oneechan Shoko had to stop herself. "What just happened ?" she thought; Looking at her self-proclaimed big sister in a new way. "You?" she answered almost unsure of when or how it happened but somewhere, somehow it did. Somehow Akky-oneechan became her secretary of Love. An asset Every Prime Minister and every young woman should have. "What just happened?" Shoko finally asked out loud.

Akira giggled at her sister's dumbfoundedness. "What is the first thing you do before going to War, oneechan?" Akira asked.

"That's an easy one, you offer to start talks."

"And what's the best way of conducting talks?"

"You find a neutral place and bring in a neutral mediator." Shoko remarked with a smile finally catching on.

"What else is important?" Akira continues.

"Offering an olive branch; stating demands from both sides necessary to meet a peace accord; planning more summit meetings for future discussion." Shoko was floored realizing that Akira had in fact negotiated a "Love Summit" for she and and L-Elf.

"Now remember, the secret to successful summits. Never give in to too many demands too early. Especially ones you don't find beneficial giving into".

"In other words, don't put out on the first date!" Akira continued.

Shoko blushed at her oneechan's comments.

"You make him work for it and you have your guy for life!" Akira- chan proudly remarked.

"Now for part two of the plan". Akira continued.

"Part two?" Shoko looked on inquisitively.

"You have L-Elf help me get my man!" Akira exclaimed excitedly.

"Her man?" thought Shoko. "Whoever it is has no hope in sight". Shoko giggled.

"Now Who exactly is this man?" she asked.

Akira smiled a half-crazed smile "Just you wait and see".


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

* * *

"Are you out of your mind?" asked Shoko, "Out of every guy here, you have to choose him?"

"It wasn't my choice" Akira looked down at her feet speaking in a hushed whisper. "Just like it wasn't Saki-oneechan's choice with Haruto-kun or your choice with L-Elf-kun".

Shoko was beginning to understand. Akira, quiet little Akira, formerly introverted little Akira, had fallen in love, "With him!" She thought.

"How long have you had these feelings?" Shoko asked.

"Since he asked me to dance at my brother's wedding" Akira answered. "We danced most of the night away" Akira continued, "Then he caught that damn bouquet!" she began to get angry. "I've seen him fight an entire army with no fear in his eyes; but that damn bouquet sent him running for his life!" She began to shake her head from side to side. "If only he didn't catch that damn bouquet!" she repeated again, the rage building up inside her.

"So you want to marry a man afraid of marriage?" Shoko asked, knowing her Oneechan a very complex young woman; but then again that's what brought them together wasn't it. The Oneechan Thrillogy as they liked referring to themselves. They were all complex high-spirited young ladies and over the last year or two it's obvious they all brought out something new in each other.

Akira had changed the most it seemed, but at the same time was still much of her former self. While she may have lost her introverted nature, she most definitely gained self-confidence while staying faithful to her hacker's strategist nature. Shoko was sure Akira had learned all she could about romance through websites and books. She could easily have taken it all and formed a "battle plan" of sorts. It was in her nature.

"Let's say we get him in a room?" Shoko asked. "How do you plan on keeping him there?".

"That's where you come in" Akira informed her "little sister". "As long as you can convince L-Elf it's a necessity having him there, he'll be there in a heartbeat".

"I'm not too sure about lying to him, Akky-oneechan".

"I never said you had to" Akira winked a sly little wink. "In this case the truth will get us just what we want".

Akira continued, "what would happen if outsiders found out what we're up to? That we've been lying about Haruto-kun's passing all this time?"

"Any revolutionists in the area would make it their business to see Haruto-chan is never brought back" Shoko admitted.

"So we need security beyond reproach? Security who we can trust? Security who will lay down their very lives to protect us if need be?".

Shoko nodded in agreement. What else could she say? Akira definitely made sense.

"Who do you think mostly fits that description?" Akira asks alread knowing the answer.

"Why that sly little minx" thought Shoko. "It's like we're playing chess and she's 12 moves ahead of me".

"you're absolutely right" Shoko informed her oneechan "He'd be perfect for the job". 'I'm having lunch with L-Elf this afternooon. I'll ask him to set it up".


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

* * *

"I'm coming" said the voice on the other side of the door as L'Elf continued to knock and knock and knock.

"Boy has he gotten soft" thought L-Elf to himself. During the war he'd be sure to be up at dawn now he's lucky to be up by noon. "With no more war, I guess he has a reason to rest" .

The door opened and there stood A-drei, L-Elf's oldest and dearest friend. Not looking quite as disheveled or beaten as L-Elf had imagined.

"Sorry, I was doing my laps in the pool" A-Drei announced proudly. 'I've been trying to get back into fighting shape".

"That's kind of why I'm here, old friend. I have a favor to ask but it can't leave this room".

A-Drei let his old friend in, closing the door behind him.

"So what's so important you need to call on the old man?" A-Drei asked.

"Old man?" L-Elf thought to himself "He's only a few years older than me. When did he start talking like Akira-chan?" he began to wonder.

"I have some news. Unusual news to say the least" L-Elf warned his former partner in crime.

"He's alive isn't he?" A-Drei more announced than asked being able to read his protege all too well.

"You could say he's currently trapped in a state between life and death" L-Elf confided in his old friend.

"Why come to me? I'm not a scientist or a doctor".

"We don't need scientists or doctors, A-drei. We need people we can trust. We need you." L-Elf continued. "We have a chance to save Haruto-kun just as he saved us many times over. If revolutionists caught wind of our plan. We'd lose Haruto-chan for good".

"We?" A-Drei asked hoping to get the answer he imagined. Knowing all too well odds were against it. He hadn't seen her since catching that damn bouquet. He ran off in fear of a damn bouquet. He went head to head with Cain, with space phantoms, with the valvrave pilots themselves; but when it came to facing marriage and the cute young girl he'd fallen hard for he was afraid. He still had no idea why but he would love to see her again and find out. "Love" he thought to himself of the word first brought to mind.

"Haruto sacrificed all his runes" L-Elf began "I made him a new one. it saved his life. Unfortunately, all tries at restoring his runes failed as did any chance at giving him new ones."

"So, what was the answer? how can he be saved" A-Drei began to wonder aloud.

"We've found a way to hack Haruto-kun. We can't give him new runes but we can link his runes to someone else. They'll spend the rest of their life by his side. Some may consider it a punishment, but she considers it a gift" L-Elf chuckled.

"L-Elf just laughed?" thought A-Drei to himself. "I've known him for years and I never saw him laugh".

"It only makes sense. She's been his best friend since childhood" A-Drei stated more a fact than an opinion. "It was obvious from day one that the Prime Minister loved him".

L-Elf broke out into a loud belly laugh scaring his good friend. "Did he snap" A-Drei thought to himself with great concern. Then he saw it. The huge smile on L-Elf's face. "Yes, he definitely snapped A-Drei confirmed to himself.

L-Elf saw the look of fear in "the old man"'s eyes. "Has senility set in?" L-Elf joked. "It's Saki Rukino who is in love with Haruto-chan".

"Saki Rukino?" The old man spoke. " I like her!" "the old man" smiled "when we fought together she had spunk! She's worthy of the job at hand!" A-Drei announced a the top of his lungs.

"But what of Prime Minister Sashinami?" asked A-Drei with a bit of concern in his voice.

"Oh you didn't hear?" L-elf beamed proudly. "She's with me!".

The old man laughed hugging his friend tight. "The lad didn't snap" he realized "He's in love!".

"So my job will be to protect you and Prime Minister Sashinami while you "marry" their runes?" A-Drei asked happily ready to accept.

"And Akira-chan as well" L-Elf added. "It was she who devised the rune hack" L-Elf smiled "and she who brought Shoko-chan and I together".

"Did she now", thought A-Drei, "maybe there is a reason why I think about her all the time".

"I'll be there" A-Drei informed L-Elf quite happily knowing soon he'd have the chance to see her again.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

* * *

"A-Drei has agreed" L-Elf informed his Prime Minister and Lady-love Shoko Sashinami. "In fact he was quite eager to participate when he heard Akira-chan was involved". "It made me wonder if maybe there was something between then we could've missed".

Shoko giggled to her young suitor "You think?" .

L-Elf knew a question hung in the air. Dare he ask? Could he have been set up by Akira-chan once again? Could she be that good of a war minister? Better than him? He wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer.

"Think we should try setting them up?" Shoko asked with a sly glint in her eye that L-Elf wouldn't quite know how to take.

"I get the feeling, if I said no I'd be in quite a bit of trouble" L-Elf joked "so it's probably best I say yes".

"Good boy" Shoko said with a smirk, leaning in to give him a quick peck on the lips. "He's truly a goner" she thought to herself and smiled.

"We're about done here so let's go to bed".

"Go t-to bed?!" L-Elf stuttered, "could she actually mean" he began to think to himself.

"I meant in our own beds!" Shoko blushed right along with her young man. "There are some things you just don't do without a ring on your finger" she warned him.

L-Elf felt quite relieved at Shoko's outburst. With all her teasing he was beginning to wonder about what was expected of him. He was happy to know despite the wanton woman front she was putting on for him lately she was as old-fashioned as he tended to be himself.

"There's something I've been meaning to ask you Shoko-chan". L-Elf asked shyly. "When did this happen" he thought to himself. He's always been confident in what he's done but when it comes to love he's pure rubbish. "Well here goes" he thought hoping for the best.

"Shoko -chan, Are you my girlfriend now?" he asked with obvious concern on his face.

Shoko put on a serious face despite the fact she was laughing deep inside. "He really is oblivious when it comes to love isn't he?" she thought. She had the perfect question to put things in perspective without scaring him out of his pants. She wanted to answer "no you're my fiancee" but she thought that too cruel and definitely too soon to tip her hand. She would play nice for once.

"Do you want me to be?" she asked putting on a mock shyness for her man.

"Yes please!" L-Elf snapped to attention in an almost military like fashion bowing slightly to his lady.

Shoko walked over to the poor young man, lifted his chin up slightly with her forefinger and followed up by giving him the biggest kiss she'd yet given him.

"Then I guess you're my boyfriend too" she answered with a smile as she watched L-Elf just about faint away. She couldn't resist adding in "until you'd rather me be something more". She kissed him once again.

"I got him!" she thought to herself proudly "and he never even saw me coming".


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

* * *

The time had come.

Prime Minister Shoko Sashinami arrived at the Valvrave hangar bay quite early that morning. In front of her stood the Valvrave 01, unit that would be the very salvation of her childhood friend. "It's time he finally had some happiness in his life" she thought. "and Saki-oneechan will be sure to give him just that".

L-Elf waved from high a top the 01 with a huge content smile on his face and a look in his eyes. A look Shoko knew was as new to him as it was to herself. "I love you too" she thought to herself and as if he was reading her mind his smile went twice as wide.

A pair of feminine hands encircled Shoko from behind as she felt a quick peck on her cheek.

"You're doing a great job so far. Keep up the good work" the familiar voice whispered.

Shoko turned to see her Akky-oneechan smiling just as wide. "That's right" Shoko thought to herself. We're about to get our Haruto-chan back". Another thought crept in. Yes, Shoko understood that this day was about Haruto and Saki, but she had to be just a little bit selfish being happy here with her boyfriend. "Boyfriend" she thought to herself dreamily. Shoko Sashinami wasn't one to date, as a matter of fact, before L-Elf she never even had one. Haruto and she had never had their chance to speak their feelings, no; the feelings they thought they had for each other aloud. It was obvious the feelings had initially fooled both of them. She was glad they never gave in to them knowing the opportunities they would've lost. Haruto never would have had the chance to be with her Saki-oneechan and she with her L-Elf. Her L-Elf she thought proudly.

Now to be just a bit more selfish and get Akira-chan her man Shoko thought.

"Are you nervous?" Shoko asked her Akky-chan in a hushed whisper.

"Of course I am", Akira confided. "There's still a .04% chance of failure". "When it comes to Saki-oneechan and Haruto-chan that's still a bit too much of a chance for me".

"A 99.96% chance of success and she's still worried?" thought Shoko to herself. "That's only a 4 in 10000 chance of something going wrong" Shoko consoled her.

"We both know the luck the Kametsuki are cursed by oneechan" Akira answered with concern in her voice "unless it was a perfect 10000 of 10000 I would always worry".

"We make our own luck" Shoko chastised Akira "and Saki-oneechan won't hesitate to make hers. She's fought to find her man; to be with her man; and she'll fight with all her heart to bring him back to her". Akira nodded in agreement.

"Well, I see as usual I'm the last to the party" the masculine voice called out full of both vimm and vigor.

Akira let go of her oneechan without a moment's notice, ran across the room to the voice she had become quite familiar with in the past. The lost smile returned to her face as she grabbed the man she most certainly knew in a vicelike bearhug that he most happily returned.

"So much for playing hard to get" Shoko thought to herself.

"A-Drei" Akira whispered. "Not as much as a -kun or a -sama added for decorum. "Good morning, my Princess. I hope you slept well last night?".

L-Elf almost fell from his perch atop the 01 due to the sight he just witnessed; looking down at his girlfriend for any sign she knew what was unfolding there in front of them.

Shoko returned a look of confusion shrugging her shoulders. She'd be sure to ask Akira what the hell just happened as soon as the events of the day had unfold.

"What did I miss" Saki laughed walking into the room wheeling the table holding her sweet Haruto-chan. "We're almost there my love" she thought to her one true love almost hoping he could hear her telepathically. "Just a little longer".

"I'll take my position, Princess" A-Drei smiled .

Akira nodded with a huge smile and a giggle while A-Drei himself began to blush.

"I definitely missed something!" Saki exclaimed with a bit of a laugh.

"So did we? Didn't we, baby ?" Shoko called to L-Elf. He nodded in agreement from above.

"Baby?" Saki thought aloud. "I definitely missed something! Fill me in quickly!" Saki begged her Shoko-oneechan.

It'd be eight more hours of the same.

To an outsider it would seem more a sunday family dinner gathering than a strategic plan to bring a friend back from the dead. To the young adults gathered here it would be no more than just another day, a lighter day, in their long complicated life together. They'd fought an invasion, lost almost everything but each other. In the end they not only saved a world; they built a new one of their own design. They made the rules in this new society.

Prime Minister Shoko Sashinami made the first rule during the war and they'd learned to live by it. "We need to be a little bit selfish for ourselves" she'd say. "They want to take everything away from us! We can't let them!". The words seem simplistic in their own right but the message was true to the heart. If you love something fight to keep it or just fight for the opportunity to find it in the first place. They found a home, they found an extended family. They survived, and now, they have a chance of doing something lost to a lot of their fallen friends. They have a chance to grow old happily.

"How's it going up here" Akira asked L-Elf from the ladder she stood on.

"We're just about set" L-Elf confirmed adjusting the last bolt connecting the modified pilot seat to the console of the Valvrave 01 Unit.

"Do you think it'll work" Akira asked with a bit of doubt in her voice.

"If you asked me when we started. I'd admit to having my doubts" L-Elf confided "but in the last few hours we've given Saki-chan a lot of new Runes to boost our chances. It's all thanks to you Akira-chan.".

Akira began to blush a bit knowing exactly what he meant. It had been her plan after all. He knew. He was good. In the last few weeks she had made many new runes for both Shoko and L-Elf and now for A-Drei and herself. In the past few hours they'd had the chance to pass them along to Saki-chan. She has many more runes now. Many pleasant loving runes. Hopefully these would help up their chances hopefully hitting that 100% chance of success she prayed for.

"And Akira-chan" L-Elf stopped himself "Akira-oneechan if I may".

Akira nodded with approval and a wide smile.

"Thank you for saving me" L-Elf whispered. "And for saving A-Drei".

"Anytime, L-Elf-otoutochan!" Akira chimed while giving a big thumbs up. "Almost ready up here!" Akira shouted as she began her descent to ground level.

"And thank you for saving my best friend" L-Elf whispered just low enough that he was sure she couldn't hear.

"You're welcome" he heard Akira whisper back from just out of view.

"Damn, she has good ears" he thought.

Akira ran right over to her Saki-oneechan to tell her exactly what L-Elf just said. It was imperative she knew and stored the runes before the runehack began. "The odds may not yet be perfect", she thought to herself "but every .01% brings us closer to breaking the curse".

Saki watched the moments occuring in the room with an outsiders eyes for the first time. She was nervous but was very content seeing her "older sisters" find what they had obviously been missing in their lives. The looks between Shoko and L-Elf were something she could never have seen months ago, no not even days or hours ago. He was their enemy when they met. It wasn't his fault. He's more than made up for his past mistakes she'd thought but by this; by the love he showed in his heart for her oneechan; he loved her like a brother now or even a brother-in-law to be.

Akira was another story entirely, Saki thought. Here she was, the brazen young lass standing in front of her putting her mark on the Prince; and he already referring to her as his Princess when they hadn't even had a date yet. "Or have they" she thought to herself. The way they move together, act together, talk together; even when talking just with their eyes. It's obviously love on both their parts. He was always a honorable man. He saved them; saved her very life. She was happy to see them both get a chance at the happiness they deserved.

It was weird she thought, to see the confident Shoko and L-Elf careful and fearful of what they say and do for fear of scaring each other off. "Like that would ever happen" Saki laughed in her head. And seeing sweet neurotic/shut-in Akira and introverted A-Drei declaring their feelings for each other loudly right out in the open. This was definitely not the girl who gave her a flowered napkin to clean up her own blood as not to stain her uniform she realized with a smile creeping across her lips.

It began to make sense to Saki Rukino. She always felt alone, hated people except him of course. She too had changed. She'd come to rely on those around her. Care for them. Love them. She finally had friends. No, she corrected herself. She now finally had a family to call her own.

Looking down at her sweet Haruto. Holding his hand. She knew. "In just a few moments I'll keep my promise to you" she smiled "and you can keep yours to me". "We promised to always be by each other's side. it's about time we made that promise a reality". Saki leaned down, tears in her eyes as she placed a soft loving kiss on Haruto's sweet lips. She smiled and held him tight for just a moment before they'd begin.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

* * *

"Ready to go" said L-Elf as he strapped Haruto's comatose body into one half of the juryrigged chair that was the best chance of bringing him back to them. "I'm here my friend" whispered L-Elf in Haruto's ear reassuringly drowned out (to others) by the sounds of the machinery humming.

"Are you ready oneechan?" Shoko asked of her little sister as she strapped her into her half of the juryrigged seat her love occupied.

Saki nodded "more than you could imagine".

"You know; if something happens" Shoko continued.

Saki stopped her mid-thought "I'll be right by the side of the love of my life for all of eternity. Just make sure you and Akira-oneechan follow my example. You seem to be following that path quite contentedly; both of you".

Shoko smiled at her little sister. "She's right" she thought to herself while closing the hatch of the 01 turning to her man, taking his hand into hers. "Cross your fingers my love, and pray as hard as you can for them".

L-Elf nodded "I already started, the moment I saw him fall".

Shoko saw it for the first time. The fear in his eyes that he tried to keep hidden. "This whole time" she thought "he put on a brave face for me". Pulling him into her arms she kissed him desperately for the first time saying the words she knew she needed to say; the words she knew he needed to hear. "I love you more than anything in this world" she confessed "and nothing will ever change that. You are my world, my darling L-Elf."

L-Elf confessed "I love you too my Sweet Shoko". They held each other tight until the time was about to come. The time to fight to save their family.

Below, Akira watched the scene unfold. She was happy for Shoko-oneechan and now L-Elf-otoutochan. She couldn't help but wonder if she could find the same love with A-Drei over time. She loved him; but could he ever love me as much she'd wonder. She felt someone take her hand and another arm encircling her from behind. Then she heard the whisper in her ear. The whisper of the man she loved with all her heart.

"I was a coward and a fool to run from the wedding" he whispered to her."I ran right into battle facing death and destruction without a fear in the world, but when it came to a beautiful young woman in a stunning dress looking deep into my eyes the fear overwhelmed me".

"It's understandable" Akira whispered back wrapping her arm around his. "Words can be more powerful than any enemy; as can looks or actions. I used to be afraid of them until Shoko-oneechan and Saki-oneechan taught me to use them". "They used to say they created a monster" Akira remarked "I used to answer that no they created a big sister". "Now you, A-Drei, created a woman from a neurotic little girl". "Thank you for that and thank you for coming back".

A-Drei squeezed Akira tight placing a soft kiss on her neck just below her ear. "Thank you for giving me a reason to stop running. I'm not afraid anymore, my Princess. I plan on staying here until you tell me to go".

"Then I hope you plan on staying here forever" Akira giggled.

"I'd like nothing more". A-Drei whispered breathlessly. "I love you Princess" A-Drei commented leaving an opening for a response hopeful on his part.

"And I love you, my Prince" Akira answered turning over her shoulder to meet his lips with hers.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

* * *

Saki Rukino watched the monitor on the 01 console. Contently Watching her sisters and then men they loved. "We've all grown up it seems" she spoke to the unconscious young man beside her "I could say it again" Saki paused "but I'd rather wait and say it when you have the chance to answer". Saki kissed his lips softly.

10...

The countdown started and the alarms sounded as L-Elf and Shoko descended the ladder leading up to the 01 cockpit.

9...

A-drei held Akira almost as if he was protecting her from what was yet to come.

8...

Saki took Haruto's hand in her's entwining her fingers in his once again.

7...

Shoko took L-Elf's hand in her's pulling him aside her as they ran to A-drei and Akira.

6...

The four ran to the safe confines of the shielded booth with the remote control panel and monitors inside.

5...

L-Elf and Akira nervously double-check the numbers making sure everything is on target

4...

Shoko looks at A-Drei realizing they both share a fear in their eyes.

3...

The Machine continues it's calculations.

2...

Akira smiles as the calculation finishes excitedly jumps into A-Drei's arms kissing him. L-Elf begins to happily tear up when seeing the number on the screen. They could never have hoped. Shoko runs to her man embracing him nervously when seeing his tears.

1...

Saki looks down at the control panel and seeing both the number and the celebration occuring in the booth she smiles and begins to cry happily.

Shoko and A-Drei see the control panel as well and embrace their lovers in a huge happy embrace.

Saki leans in and kisses her man with every bit of passion in her heart. "When he wakes up he'll certainly have something to remember" she thought.

0...

"All runes present. Chance of success 100%" the message flashed across the monitor screen in huge green letters.

"Beginning connection"

They heard it first. Saki's screams as she was thrown back in her chair. Thrown aside. Screaming in pain. She began to convulse.

"Stop it! Shut it down!" Shoko screamed tears in her eyes. L-Elf held her tight.

"There's no way to stop it once its begun" he said squeezing her tight as they both began to cry.

Saki screamed in pain, never once letting go of her sweet boy as she liked to call him. She held his hand tight through all the pain.

"I screwed up!" Akira started screaming crying as A-Drei held her tight doing calculations in her head. "How did I screw this up!" she screamed.

"You didn't!" L-Elf screamed tears in his eyes. "Look Akira-oneechan! Look!"

They watched it unfold.

The next scream Saki did not scream alone.

What were they seeing they thought. First Haruto began to scream in unison with Saki. Then they began to convulse in sync matched up perfectly. Then they both were tossed around like ragdolls in the same exact pattern.

"It's working" L-Elf spoke in a hushed whisper "It's working!" he screamed in excitement. Haruto was clearly breathing. He was moving. He had a voice. "Open your eyes Damn it!" he shouted at the top of his lungs" at Haruto. "Open your eyes!".

"Process complete" the computer voice spoke.

"System shutdown imminent"

The system power cut. All grew silent in the room. They console was shut down. They could no longer see Saki and Haruto in the 01 cockpit, The remote console went dead.

They had to hope all would be right.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

* * *

They watched from below as the hatch of the 01 began to open. Saki Rukino stumbled out shakily. It was not she their eyes were entirely transfixed on though. It was her left hand and the masculine right hand that grasped it tight. They could detect the slight bit of nervousness on her face as she leaned in slightly helping him to his feet. His eyes still closed not yet adjusting to the security lights that tripped on at the power shutdown.

It was him. "Haruto is alive" they all thought; but they also shared another darker thought. "Is he whole?"

"Do you know who I am?" Saki asked of the man holding her hand.

Tears rolled from his closed eyes and hers as he spoke.

"You're Saki Rukino" he said as he opened his tearful eyes "and you love me" he whispered.

Saki threw her arms around him crying. To those below they couldn't tell if it was good news or bad news from the distance they stood.

Saki began to get nervous. "Was he speaking through his mind or mine" she wondered. She had to know. "And do you know who you are?" she asked hoping he got the answer right.

"I'm Haruto Tokishima" he smiled "and I love you Miss Saki Rukino with all my heart and soul". Haruto snatched Saki into his arms and kissed her like there was no tomorrow.

It should have been enough but she had to know why. "Haruto, why do you love me".

He smiled and began to answer. "When I was cursed you protected me. When I was falling apart you gave me strength. When I was alone you took that feeling away. When I was dying you never left my side. When you realized you could die you were willing to give your life so that we could be together" she stopped him with a huge kiss more to show her love than to shut him up". As the kiss broke he smiled "there's more you know". Saki looked into his eyes wondering exactly what "more" could be.

"I love you because given the chance to have your own happiness in the end you worried about mine". Saki blushed a bit as Haruto kissed her cheek. "I love you because you love me". He gave her a slight peck on the lips. "I love you mostly because you're Miss Saki Rukino; because I love you and I never want to let you go" Haruto took Saki into his arms, kissing her desperately. "I won't ever leave you alone again".

"You remember the promise?" Saki teared up.

"I'll never forget" Haruto whispered. "and I'll keep my promise until the very end of time".

"I'll hold you to that my sweet boy" Saki whispered. "Until the very end of time".


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

* * *

It took a fews moments until either Saki or her Haruto were able to navigate the ladder distance down to the rest of their expanded family. When time came to finally attempt the climb Saki would guide Haruto slowly one step at a time as she planned to guide him through their new land he created and had yet to see.

"One more step, Haruto" Saki whispered to her man as he was finally able to reach the ground. He pulled her to him tight never wanting to let her go.

"Thank you for giving me life again, my sweet girl" Haruto whispered kissing her softly once again.

The cheers woke them to the reality that they wern't alone. Saki had forgotten the fact due to the circumstances of the current situation. She could hear his heartbeat; her own shallow breath. Every other sound was drowned out to her. To both of them. Until the clapping. She wanted to turn beet red from embarassment but at the moment she didn't care. She wanted to be with her man in every way and she didn't care who knew how bad. From the look in Haruto's eyes the feeling was mutual.

Shoko and Akira ran up to Haruto and Saki flinging their arms around them. The girls wondered if he had a clue who they were until he spoke. "Shoko-oneechan" Haruto stuttered "Akira-oneechan" squeezing both tight as well as poor Saki getting squished in the middle.

"Hey, loosen up I can't breathe" Saki exclaimed as they all broke into laughter tears in their eyes.

"I missed you all" Haruto cried.

It was then he first saw him, behind the girls his back against a support just as any smart military man would. Haruto slowly walked over to him. Looked up into his face seeing for the first time face-to-face his own handiwork. "Does it hurt?" Haruto asked of A-Drei's missing eye. He kept a patch over the scarred area most likely ashamed his perfect looks aren't quite perfect any more.

"Sometimes" A-Drei answered truthfully.

"I'm sorry Prince A-Drei" Haruto answered tears in his eyes stunning the regal for a moment.

"Here he is just regaining his life" A-Drei thought "and he's worried about what he did to me". He knew what he had to say. He promised himself he'd tell him he forgave him just to keep the peace. That he'd always hate him. But now he knew the truth. He was just a young man defending his friend. They both were. It was war not hate that put them on opposite sides of the battle.

"It wasn't your fault", Haruto-kun. It was in time of war. In heated battle. I'd have done the same to you. It was my duty as it was yours. We're on the same side now so there are no worries.

A-Drei put out his hand to Haruto. Haruto shook his head pulling him into a manly hug. "You helped save my life A-Drei-kun. For that I'll forever be grateful".

"It was nothing" A-Drei smiled.

"In comparison with the other two times you've done it it may be" Haruto smiled.

"Other two times?" A-Drei asked not sure of what exactly Haruto spoke of.

"You gave me back my will to live when you rescued my Saki sending her back to me" Haruto continued "I wanted to die you gave me back my reason to live".

A-Drei smiled "And the other time?" he asked.

"Loneliness is a deadly feeling. By saving my Akira-oneechan from that, you saved her the pain I bared for years. For that, I am proud to call you both friend and family". Haruto patted A-Drei's shoulder "Thank you Prince A-Drei" Haruto uttered with great respect.

Akira returned to her man holding him tight knowing all was right once again.

Silently, Haruto turned and walked right up to L-Elf. For a moment the tension could be cut with a knife.

"He knows" L-Elf thought. "He knows that Shoko and I are together now. He hates me. He has to".

Haruto spoke "you are my friend" he said tears in his eyes. "Your were wrong you know" Haruto corrected.

L-Elf couldn't breathe from the weight upon him. Haruto did in fact hate him he thought.

"You should have said you're my family, my brother" Haruto smiled "You gave me my life back". "no", he corrected himself "you gave me a new life. A better one. Just as you give Shoko-oneechan now". Shoko and L-Elf exchanged surprised looks at how the scene unfolded. "After all the pain, after all the death, after all the heartache. You my brother gave us all new lives. New happiness." Haruto waved Shoko over pushing her right to L-Elf. "take care of her, brother she loves you just as much as you do her".

Haruto turned and walked back to Saki continuing his thought. "As much as I love my sweet girl Miss Saki Rukino" Haruto drops to one knee.

"Saki, I know I screwed this up last time but this time I think I know what say". "Thanks to the runehack" he thinks to himself.

"My dearest Saki, would you do me the honor of spending eternity by my side?"

"It would be my honor my sweet Haruto" Saki began to cry tears of joy hugging her man tight kissing him with all her love, heart, soul and passion.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

* * *

"Smart young man" Prince A-Drei whispered to Akira.

"Do you think you could ever think of me as husband material?" He asked Akira.

"I always have" Akira laughed "I think that's why you ran from my brother's wedding".

"Well, I'm not running now" A-Drei laughed "would you?" he paused "could you?".

"Are you asking?" Akira teased.

"I suppose I am" A-Drei stuttered out "Will you be my Princess Akira".

"In a heartbeat my Prince".

The mood created by Haruto and Saki was contagious.

First A-Drei, his life as a single man had just in fact ended.

L-Elf on the other hand would have easily ended his days ago if he knew his friend, no his brother, approved.

"Shoko" L-Elf began.

"Yes baby?" Shoko asked cuddling up to her man.

"Were you serious last night?" he asked hoping he got the answer he wanted.

"About what, baby?" Shoko asked.

"About being my girlfriend until I wanted something more" he asked.

"Of course" she responded to her man. He turned her to see Haruto and Saki and the A-Drei and Akira. Getting the general message she asked with a smile on her face and tears in her eyes "Do you want something more?" she whispered.

"Yes, please!" he answered quickly.

"What do you want exactly?" Shoko asked hoping for the right answer.

"To be with you forever" L-Elf stuttered.

"I think that can easily be arranged, baby". Shoko stopped herself remembering what Akira had said about making things clear. "You mean marriage right?".

"Yes, please!" L-Elf answered nervously.

"Then the answer is definitely yes, baby" Shoko turned and kissed her man.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

* * *

"A triple wedding?" Haruto exclaimed. It never once entered his mind. Honestly though, why not? Akira, Shoko and Saki have grown closer than real sisters. L-Elf and A-Drei had been instrumental in bringing he and Saki together, saving his very life and Saki's and making his two oneechans happier than they've ever been. "That's a great idea!" he happily agreed.

"So I can tell Shoko-oneechan and Akira-oneechan the plan is greenlit?" Saki asked in an almost military-like fashion that made Haruto giggle.

"Plan A is a go!" answered Haruto with a thumb up, a wink and a nod.

Saki giggled "Actually it was Plan C".

"I'm almost afraid to ask what Plans A and B were" Haruto joked.

"Trust me" Saki answered with a hint of concern in her voice "you don't want to know" leaving her sweet boy speechless as she went to pass on the news.

"The Plan is a go!" Saki informed her oneechans over the phone a huge smile lighting up her face. "No Akira-chan we don't need the trapeze and clown costumes OR the live animals".

It took just 3 days to organize a wedding. Whether in war or love Saki, Shoko and Akira were a force to be reckoned with. If a problem was at hand they'd be sure to find the most expedient solution.

"Thank you for talking Akira out of the Circus wedding" Saki whispered to her Shoko-oneechan "I know she's never actually been to one but weddings and live animals just don't mix".

"Unless they're white doves" Shoko corrected her ittle sister.

Saki nodded in agreement. "So do we have everything we need" Saki asked nervously.

"I think so" Shoko smiled as she handed Saki a large box and a much much smaller one. Both wrapped in beautiful fashion.

"What's this?"

"The large box is your wedding dress. The smaller your honeymoon survival kit." Shoko giggled.

"Honeymoon survival kit?" Saki wondered aloud.

"The only thing you'll need for a great honeymoon" Shoko assured her "open them up" she suggested".

Eagerly Saki went right for her wedding dress, pulling it right out of the box. "It's so white she thought". "Is it okay to wear white" asked Saki considering the fact that she and Haruto had an "active" love life.

"White is for weddings" Shoko scolded "we don't have puritanical values here in our society so don't impose them on yourself".

"Thank you Shoko-oneechan" Saki beamed throwing her arms around her big sister "proud of the woman she'd became.

"Can I open this too?" Saki asked of the honeymoon survival kit.

"Of course" Shoko answered waiting intently for her little sister's reaction.

Saki tore into the package pulling out the contents "two toothbrushes, a tube of toothpaste and a bottle of vitamins ?" Saki thought to herself.

"Honeymoon survival kit?" Saki asked.

"All you need to never leave your room during the honeymoon" Shoko answered with a sly wink.

"Ohhhhhhhh!" Saki answered beginning to blush. "Thank you oneechan".

Shoko smiled "I won't even tell you what Akira-oneechan suggested putting in there. It even scared me" Shoko laughed.

"I'm not sure I'd wanna know" Saki giggled.

"Trust me you don't" Shoko answered quite seriously.

Akira glided in in the most beautiful wedding dress either of her Oneechans had ever seen. She looked like an Angel in flight.

"You look so beautiful Akira-oneechan" Saki sighed, Shoko nodding in agreement.

"Do I really?" Akira didn't quite believe "maybe I should go show it to A-Drei and see what he thinks".

"No!" screamed out Saki and Shoko in unison.

"why not?" asked a confused Akira.

"It's bad luck for the groom to see the bride in her wedding dress before the wedding!" they both yelled at poor naive Akira.

She'd only been to one wedding her entire life and actually found it quite boring until A-Drei came along. Why was it that now she felt different. Was it because the wedding was her and A-Drei's? Shoko and L-Elf's? Saki and Haruto's? "That must be the reason" she thought to herself.

Shoko lost herself deep in thought for a moment before asking her sister a very important question. "I know we all agreed that the triple wedding is the thing to do. I love the idea" but there should be room a little room for individuality too" Shoko continued. "I have an idea. You don't have to say yes, it's just an idea".

Saki and Akira leaned in to listen, no, look at Shoko's proposal as she sketched something out on her tablet. Saki smiled at her big sister. She loved Shoko-oneechan more than ever for putting her mind at ease once again.

Akira looked on and studied the design "think we can have them done by wedding day?" she asked Shoko-chan.

"I can't see why not" Shoko smiled "it's a simple task at hand".

"Let's do" Akira shouted excitedly.

"Aye!" Saki remarked with a big smile and bigger thumbs up.

"Oh! One thing" Shoko warned. "Don't tell the boys. It's gonna knock their socks off!".


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

* * *

The wedding day had arrived.

The three young men sat alone in their dressing room making quick alterations to the regal attire Prince A-Drei had fashioned for them".

"Do I really look good" L-Elf asked his brothers half fearing the answer they would give him. Stress was eatting at the poor young man while both A-Drei and Haruto appeared both calm and collected.

"You look fine" A-Drei smiled sitting back in his chair placing his feet up on the table in front of him.

"How are you two remaing so calm!?" L-Elf asked of A-Drei and Haruto wondering if even they knew the answer.

"It's simple" A-Drei looked L-Elf clear in the eyes "don't think of today. Think of tomorrow; and the next day; and the day after that".

L-Elf seemed puzzled looking to Haruto for clarification of his mentor's advice.

"Do you and Shoko-oneechan plan on getting a house? having children? watching them grow up together? growing old together?" Haruto asked.

"Of course we do" L-Elf answered defensively "we love each other".

"Forget your nerves. Get the picture in your mind of Shoko-oneechan and you, together through all time. Hand-in-hand".

L-Elf began to trail off deep within his own mind's eye. He saw her there holding their first child. Saw her there holding him tight on the swing behind their new house as they watched their children play. The stress left his body until he was snapped out of it by a huge smack on the back.

"Now you're learning" A-Drei chuckled as he put his arm around his protegee.

"When did he get up" L-Elf thought not realizing just how long he was actually lost in thought.

"It's time" Haruto announced with a loving smile on his face as he opened not just the door to the room but the door that would usher them into the next phase of their very lives "let's go claim our futures".

L-Elf and A-Drei happily followed his lead.

There they stood among all the former students and friends they now saw in everyday life. Akira's brother and his new wife, baby in hand in the front row looking on proudly. The energy of the room filling the three young men with a nervous new energy, but a good one filled with hope and love.

The music began to play. The time was at hand. The three men turned to the aisle, looking on to the the double doors just a short distance away. Anticipating the sight they were about to see.

The doors opened. Gasps filled the room.

"They look beautiful" a whisper cut the air of silence in the room.

All three ladies dressed in almost exactly the same dress; almost. A flowing white gown accentuated with light pastel accents; green for Saki, violet for Akira and red for Shoko. The very colors of the Valvrave Units they pilot.

"Camilla is here by my side" Saki thought to herself; here on what she imagined to be the greatest day of her life.

Smiles and gasps of awe filled the room. Those of the three groom brightest of them all as their brides stood beside them taking their hands.

The minister spoke of the great war and the trials and tribulations encountered of creating the Brave New World before them. Spoke of the bravery and service of the six youngsters before them. Heroes not just in time of war but also in time of peace and of 'd go on to speak of the possibilities of the future that they'd face together. Of the new private worlds they'll go on to create together. No longer six separate lives but now three joined lives and in some ways just one. Asking if any would choose to stand out against any or all of these unions the church fell into total silence. All was well this day they thought as the wedding proceeded and the three pairs of lovers spoke their vows.

"I know in some ways it seems we've just met" Akira begins "in others though it seems we've known each other forever". "I've found forever and I choose it easily over yesterday, my Prince".

A-Drei returned the loving gaze of his Akira "When we first met I was afraid" A-Drei almost confessed "afraid of feelings I'd never experienced before; about no one I'd ever met before. It frightened me." A-Drei smiled content "You gave me not only the bravery to face my fears but the realization that the fears were only in my head, not in my heart. You are my heart, my Princess Akira".

L-Elf looked to Shoko "I know I've never been good with words" L-Elf began. "In the past I've suffered all my life. I've never experienced love or family until you came along". He continued a tear forming in his eye "you loved me despite all my failings and even in some ways because of them". "I will always love you for that my darling Shoko and for the hope you've given me; that you give me every day". "I hope to do you proud in your choice to choose me as your husband".

Shoko went off her planned vows. It took her days to write them. Wrote them from her heart but after what she just heard she couldn't answer with stock answers. She had to speak from the heart.

"You do me proud every day" Shoko began "When we first met it was on opposite sides of the battlefield. When we first got to know each other, you comforted me when my father died. Worrying about not only my feelings but of those close to me". Shoko reached up and wiped his tear. "You sacrificed all again and again for my happiness not even realizing that you were the very happiness I needed". "I love you my darling L-Elf. You thank me for making a choice, if there was actually a choice to make it was a selfish one on my part as I can't picture life without you by my side".

Saki Rukino's heart began to pound. She'd confessed a lot to him over the last few weeks but no confession as weighty as this. She took a deep breath and began to speak.

"Haruto, when you first proposed to me I turned you down. When you proposed out of obligation I feared you loved another. You proposed out of obligation and guilt. I couldn't accept that despite all the love I had for you in my heart. I put on a brave face and sent you to her. Then spent the next few hours crying in Camilla's embrace. I promised myself I'd keep fighting to win your love freely. It took long enough but I finally did. I hope I still have it after this confession" Saki began to tear up.

Haruto smiled, tears in his eyes "when I was hurting you lovingly gave of yourself to make me feel alright. When we had our first date, in the cinema, I was about to ask you then and there not out of obligation or duty but out of wanting to take you into my arms and never let you go. When the alarms sounded ending our date I began to think she's an Idol, a Superstar she would never say yes to me out of love. So I asked out of duty thinking it would be an easier way for you to accept me."

Saki snapped to attention wanting to speak but also wanting to hear what more Haruto had to say.

"I was crying as well when you sent me away"."I loved you back then with all my heart and if it's possible I love you much, much more every day. I will always love you and will always keep my promise to you, my sweet Miss Saki Rukino. my sweet Mrs. Saki Tokishima" he corrected himself happily.

Saki didn't even wait for the minister's announcement throwing herself into the arms of her new husband, all her heart and soul in her kiss "and I to you my dear sweet boy" looking deep into his eyes correcting herself too "my sweet husband" she whispered breathily.

The room erupted in applause despite the fact the minister wasn't done speaking. He waited till it quieted down before attempting to speak again.

"In the name of the Kametsuki that gave us hope and freedom. I pronounce you husbands and wives. Gentlemen, you may kiss your brides". The minister never realized he was giving permission to the wrong three. As it would be the brave young Oneechan Thrillogy that would seize their first married kisses from their three young men quite happily.

The celebration would continue all night. Rion-sensei would catch all three bouquets it would suggest she trained hard for it. Through great effort Takumi-sensei managed to catch all three garters. It was obvious to all that this time the tradition was more a premonition than a superstition. There were rumors of the two but this event seemed to prove them more fact than idle gossip. That's a story for another time though.

"We did it!" Akira chimed to her two sisters enthusiastically.

"No, you did it!" Shoko smiled proud of her dear dear "big sister".

Saki continued "It was you who brought Haruto back to me" Saki hugged Akira tight.

"You who brought L-Elf and I together despite our 'obliviousness' as you put it" Shoko giggled.

"And you that brought happiness back to a sad young man" Saki spoke of A-Drei.

"You were always afraid of getting involved with people my dear sweet oneechan, but look at you now. You created six happy lives" Shoko showered Akira with praise.

"Seven" Saki confided confusing Shoko for a moment Before the happy laughter began.

"Eight", slyly added Akira, leaving her sisters first speechless then extremely happy before adding "nine if A-Drei gets me the elephant he promised". Sending her sisters into a complete fit of belly-laughter.

"You better hurry and catch up Shoko-oneechan" Akira added "our kids need another friend to play with".

"I'm working on it!" Shoko laughed.

"Now where are we going on our honeymoon" Akira asked.

"We should ask the guys" Saki added flashing Shoko a concerned look "Should we tell her?" Saki whispered asked her Shoko-oneechan.

"We should let her have this one" Shoko responded "After all we did take the circus from her".

Both laughed as they hugged their big sister tight.

"Let's go ask the boys where we're going" Shoko whispered to her sisters happily".


End file.
